For each question, choose the correct answer.
Camels
Camels are one of the only large animals that can live happily in the Sahara Desert. The hot weather and strong winds are not a (1)…………… for them. Also, they do not need to eat or drink every day, and this (2)…………… them very useful to the people who live there.
Camels begin working at the age of about four years old and don’t stop until they are around 25 to 30. They can carry people or things a very long (3)……………, and because of this they are sometimes (4)…………… the ‘ships of the desert’.
These days, there are roads across some (5)…………… of the Sahara, so buses and lorries are often (6)…………… . However, in places where there are no roads, camels are still the only type of transport.
1 A trouble B mistake C problem
2 A gets B has C makes
3 A way B path C road
4 A described B said C called
5 A parts B examples C things
6 A put B used C done
Answer
1 The correct answer is C: ‘problem’ is the correct noun for this gap because it is the only option that means ‘a difficult situation’ (the ‘hot weather and strong winds’ in the Sahara Desert). A is incorrect because this noun doesn’t collocate with ‘a’ before the gap. B is also incorrect. A mistake is something that you think is wrong. Camels would not think the weather conditions are wrong.
2 The correct answer is C: ‘makes’ is the correct verb because it fits the meaning of this gap. ‘makes’ in this sentence means to cause something to happen. In other words, because camels ‘do not need to eat or drink every day’ this makes them ‘very useful’. A and B are incorrect as they don’t collocate with the words that follow the gap (‘them very useful’).
3 The correct answer is A: ‘way’ is the best noun for this gap as it means ‘a great distance’ (a very long way). B and C are incorrect because they don’t collocate with ‘a very long … ’. Also, camels ‘carry people or things’ on many paths and roads, and not just on one path or road, in the Sahara Desert.
4 The correct answer is C: ‘called’ is the best verb for this gap as ‘to be called something’ is a fixed phrase that means ‘to have a particular name’ (the ‘ships of the desert’). A is incorrect because it doesn’t fit with ‘the’ which follows the gap. This part of the phrase would need to say ‘they are described as the…’ in order to be correct. B is incorrect as this verb doesn’t fit the meaning of the gap. The words that are being quoted (‘ships of the desert’) are not spoken speech.
5 The correct answer is A: ‘parts’ is the correct noun for this gap because ‘parts of something’ is a fixed phrase that means ‘some but not all of something’ (the Sahara Desert). B is incorrect as it doesn’t fit the meaning of the gap. C is also incorrect because it doesn’t collocate with the words after the gap (‘of the Sahara’) or complete the meaning the gap.
6 The correct answer is B: ‘used’ in this gap means ‘to do something with a particular purpose’ (buses and lorries are used on roads in the Sahara Desert). A and C are incorrect as neither of these verbs completes the sentence. Further information would need to follow the gap to form a complete sentence with either of these verbs.